A heat-dissipating device, e.g. a fan, is often used to dissipate the heat generated due to the operation of the electronic device. The heat dissipation is always the essential problem in the application of electronic devices. A good heat-dissipating mechanism usually represents a stable performance of the electronic device. If an electronic device is operated under an abnormally dissipating condition, it will inevitably lead to an unstable performance and reduce its useful life.
Typically, a general electronic device only needs a fan. However, a high-level electronic system needs more fans so as to sufficiently dissipate the generated heat. Further, using more fans is helpful for increasing the stability of the electronic system. Currently, many high-level electronic appliances have heat-dissipating devices that are hot swappable. For example, a hot swappable heat-dissipating device is widely used to a server of a computer system. The heat-dissipating device is designed to be feasible for hot swap by being mounted thereon terminal connectors for receiving power or signals from the system. In other words, when the heat-dissipating device can be changed in case of malfunction, test or maintenance without turning off the system.
In order to attain the purpose of hot swap, there are many kinds of designs for fan module. Please refer to FIG. 1A which is a schematic diagram of a conventional fan module 11. Two fans 11 are electrically connected with a terminal connector 12 through a plurality of conductive wires 13 and the terminal connector 12 is electrically connected to a receptacle of a system (not shown) when these two fans 11 are combined together by screws and inserted into the system frame 14 for transmitting the power or signal between the system as shown in FIG. 1B. In such a high-level electronic system, these two fans are viewed as a fan module and a plurality of fan modules are inserted in the system frame in parallel for increasing the stability of the system.
However, this way still results in the difficulty to lead so many conductive wires. Furthermore, when one of these fan modules is malfunctioned in operation, it is uneasy to disassemble and replace it. Moreover, when one fan in the fan module is out of order, the entire fan module must be replaced, thereby resulting in an increased cost.
Thus, it is desirable to develop a hot swappable heat-dissipating module to overcome the above-described drawbacks and provide more convenient use and design for users and system designers in a limited space.
An object of the present invention is to provide a heat-dissipating module feasible for hot swap in a system.
Another object of the present invention is to provide a hot swappable heat-dissipating module for providing the best heat-dissipating efficiency in a limited space without being affected by the inside height or thickness of a system.
Another yet object of the present invention is to provide a hot swappable heat-dissipating module which can be easily disassembled and replaced in case of malfunction.
According to the present invention, the heat-dissipating module includes at least one heat-dissipating device and a terminal mounted and fixed on one side of the heat-dissipating device and electrically connected with the heat-dissipating device. As the heat-dissipating module is inserted into a frame of the system, the terminal will be received by a receptacle inside the system such that the heat-dissipating module can be electrically connected to the system.
Preferably, the heat-dissipating device is an axial-flow fan.
The terminal can be electrically connected with the heat-dissipating device by wires, weldings, contacts or pins. The terminal further includes a plurality of pins to be inserted in holes of the receptacle for electrically connecting the heat-dissipating module with the system.
Preferably, the heat-dissipating module further includes a securing device mounted on the one side of the heat-dissipating device for fixing the terminal. The securing device is assembled with the heat-dissipating device by screws, rivets, adhesives or engaging members. The securing device can be formed as an L-shaped structure. Additionally, the securing device includes a bracket extending outwardly from a side thereof for disposing the terminal thereon and has a plurality of elastic pieces respectively mounted on a plurality of retaining holes formed on a surface thereof such that as the heat-dissipating module is inserted into the frame of the system and a housing of the system is covered on the frame, the plurality of elastic pieces will urge against the housing of the system for fixing the heat-dissipating module in the frame.
Preferably, the heat-dissipating module is inserted into the frame of the system through a tray to be electrically connected with the system. The tray can be separated into a plurality of compartments by a plurality of supports for respectively disposing a plurality of the heat-dissipating modules therein. In addition, the tray further includes a plurality of terminal receivers to be mounted on each of the plurality of supports such that when each of the plurality of heat-dissipating modules is inserted into the tray, the terminal will be received by the terminal receiver for electrically connecting the heat-dissipating module with the system. The tray can be fixed to the frame by screws, rivets or engaging members.
The present invention may best be understood through the following description with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which: